New Mexico Governor's Bold Voucher Plan

April 23, 1999

New Mexico's Gov. Gary Johnson (R) is embracing school vouchers with a zeal and conviction that might put governors proposing timid pilot programs to shame. He wants every pupil in his state -- rich or poor, white or minority -- to have a voucher.

Johnson proposes to cover 100,000 children in the first year of the program and the rest soon after.

Although political advisers cautioned him against using the word "voucher," fearing it would turn off voters, Johnson says he used it in his campaign last year "whenever possible."

Before he began speaking out in favor of vouchers, fewer than half of New Mexico's parents supported the idea -- now 58 percent have come around to it.

The state's Democratic lawmakers have sent the governor two budgets which do not provide for vouchers -- and he has vetoed both.

Gov. Johnson vows to continue using his veto, even if it means the state government will shut down in July.

When he ran for re-election last year against a strong Hispanic candidate, pollsters predicted Johnson -- described as stridently free-market -- would have a hard time winning. But he did, becoming the first governor in the state to win two consecutive terms in office.

Residents of New Mexico -- where public spending accounts for half the state's economy -- reportedly adore big government. So three-quarters of the population opposed privatizing the state's prisons four years ago. But Johnson privatized them anyway and now most New Mexicans applaud the move.